Nature Note #99: Superbowl Saturday


A touch of winter to cap a fantastic day
This past weekend I did something amazing, I participated in the Superbowl. "What are you talking about?!", you might well gasp to yourself after reading the title. "The Superbowl happens in February and that's that."

Well since I don't care about football enough to merit as a thing, I am instead talking about Mass Audubon's Superbowl of Birding XI which took place this Saturday in the counties of Essex in Massachusetts and Rockingham in New Hampshire. During the nine or so hours of birding that I participated in, I got to meet some of the young birders and lead the group called the "Hedwig Express" as we toured around the hotspots of Essex County. The purpose of the event was twofold. One was to promote competitive birding as a fun activity to pursue on a winter's day, as well as being a way to socialize and associate with other obsessive people with a similar passion. The basic idea was to collect points based on what birds you saw. Common birds like chickadees and Mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) were worth 1 point while others were worth higher point values based on their relative difficulty of being found and/or rarity at that given time of year. Birds that were completely out of place like a Pacific Loon (Gavia pacifica) or unexpectedly overwintering would be worth 4 or 5 points.

The following are two lists containing some the species we saw at our stops along the way with the point totals that each of them carried.

Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary (19 points):
  • Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) - 1
  • Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) - 1
  • Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) - 3
  • Downy Woodpecker (Picoides pubescens) - 1
  • Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) - 1
  • American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) - 1
  • Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) - 1
  • Tufted Titmouse (Baeolophus bicolor) - 1
  • American Robin (Turdus migratorius) - 1
  • Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) - 2
  • American Tree Sparrow (Spizella arborea) - 1
  • Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) - 1
  • White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) - 1
  • Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) - 1
  • Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) - 1
  • American Goldfinch (Spinus tristis) - 1 
 Jodrey State Fish Pier (14 points):
  • Common Eider (Someteria mollisima) - 1
  • White-winged Scoter (Melanitta fusca) - 1
  • Red-breasted Merganser (Mergus serrator) - 1
  • Ruddy Duck (Oxyura jamaicensis) - 4
  • Common Loon (Gavia immer) - 1
  • Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus) - 1
  • Glaucous Gull (Larus hyperboreus) - 3
  • Iceland Gull (L. glaucoides) - 2
Overall our team finished last with 70+ points (the top team score over 180 points), but our position didn't matter because what we'd experienced that day was so much more. Being out in nature viewing the birds we love, spending time with new people, and doing something I truly love. I only hope I get to do something this fun again soon.

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